Business

Japanese car giants, Honda and Nissan, have announced plans to merge. That would make them the third largest car maker by sales. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding, which would also include the smaller Nissan Alliance member, Mitsubishi Motors, in the talks on integration. Japan’s car makers have struggled to

An electric cargo bike logistics company which counts the fashion giant Zara among its partners has launched an urgent hunt for new backers. Sky News has learnt that Zedify, which has raised millions of pounds from investors including Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital, is working with Interpath Advisory on a review of its financing options. Zedify

Andrew Bailey, the Bank of England governor, will join Rachel Reeves on a visit to China next month aimed at strengthening financial services trade ties between the two countries. Sky News has learnt that Mr Bailey and Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority, will both accompany the chancellor on the January trip.

Retail giants including Asda, Marks & Spencer, Primark and Tesco will mount a new year campaign to warn Rachel Reeves that plans to hike business rates on larger shops will put jobs and stores under threat. Sky News has learnt that some of Britain’s biggest chains – which also include J Sainsbury, Morrisons and Kingfisher-owned

It would be easy to dismiss tabletop gaming as a “geeky” hobby played by young boys in the basements of their homes. For those who have never enjoyed the rush of playing a miniature wargame, it may come as a surprise that it is in fact a multi-billion-pound industry loved by people from all walks

British billionaire Mike Ashley has been denied a seat on the board of fast-fashion business Boohoo. A majority of Boohoo shareholders rejected efforts by the Sports Direct founder at a meeting in Manchester on Friday, with 64% of votes opposing the appointment. A similar number also denied restructuring expert Mike Lennon a seat on the

The cost of living crisis has “boosted” the secondhand industry, Sky News has been told, as more than £2bn is spent on pre-loved gifts this Christmas. Adam Jay, CEO of Vinted Marketplace, said the “trend” in buying pre-loved was “happening anyway” but described rising costs elsewhere as a possible “accelerator”. “I’m sure the cost of

The UK’s retail sales recovery was smaller than expected in the key Christmas shopping month of November, official figures show. Retail sales rose just 0.2% last month despite discounting events in the run-up to Black Friday. It followed a 0.7% fall seen in October, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Sales

The Bank of England has maintained its guidance for “gradual” interest rate cuts next year, following surprise support for a reduction this month. Its rate-setting committee, while deciding to keep Bank rate on hold at 4.75%, noted higher than expected wage rises and inflation despite a slowdown in the economy over the second half of

The US central bank has announced an interest rate cut, just hours before the Bank of England is tipped to refrain from following suit. The Federal Reserve cut its main funding rate by a quarter point to a new target range of 4.25%-4.5%, as markets had expected, but signalled that future reductions would happen more

Average water bills in England and Wales will increase by 36% over the next five years, water regulator Ofwat has said. The rise is equivalent to an average extra of £31 per year. Water companies had asked for an average rise of 40%. The regulator’s draft determinations issued in July said the bills would rise

Inflation has risen for the second month in a row, according to official figures. The overall rate of price rises – as measured by the consumer price index (CPI) – grew by 2.6% in November. It’s a further move away from the Bank of England‘s target 2% inflation rate after the rate ticked up to

Sir Keir Starmer has defended a decision not to compensate women affected by changes to their retirement age – saying doing so would “burden” the taxpayer. The prime minister said he understood the concerns of the Women Against State Pension Inequality – often known as Waspi women – but their demands were not affordable. He

Wages are rising far faster than expected after a year of slowing, official figures show. Average pay rose sharply, by 5.2%, in the three months to October, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). A month earlier wages had been growing by 4.4% including bonuses and 4.9% excluding bonuses. The increase comes

The Royal Mail group is on its way to passing into foreign ownership, but the state will keep a “golden share” in the company. It means the government will have to approve any key changes to Royal Mail’s ownership, the location of its headquarters and tax residency. This is something the government does with companies

The sale of Royal Mail to Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky will be approved this morning, Sky News understands. Mr Kretinsky‘s company EP Group will buy the postal service’s parent company International Distribution Services (IDS). The £5.3bn takeover deal had been agreed in May but was subject to a review under national security laws as Royal

UK-based partners at Grant Thornton, the accountancy firm, have voted to back the sale of a majority stake to Cinven, the private equity firm. Sky News has learnt that GTUK’s partnership voted unanimously to support the deal, in a move expected to be announced internally as early as Monday. Support for the deal had been

NatWest Group is to hand its chief executive a potential multimillion pound pay boost as it returns to full private ownership after nearly 17 years in state hands. Sky News has learnt that the chair of the bank’s remuneration committee, Lena Wilson, is consulting leading institutional shareholders about an overhaul of its boardroom pay policy.

The private equity firm circling Boots the Chemist’s parent company is lining up financing from a syndicate of banks for a prospective $10bn-plus takeover deal. Sky News has learnt that Sycamore Partners is arranging debt funding for a deal to buy Walgreens Boots Alliance, with Bank of America, JP Morgan and Wells Fargo among those

Tube and rail fares in London will go up by 4.6% from next March, the capital’s mayor has said. The hike matches the rise in regulated train fares for England’s mainline railway. From 2 March, Transport for London’s (TfL) daily caps will increase by 40p-70p, depending on what zones are travelled through. Labour mayor Sadiq